Any touring professional will tell you the same thing: tube amplifiers have several problems when traveling, including continual movement and temperature changes.
Your amplifier will not always receive the same amount of power when traveling across borders or even within the same city because not all mains power is created equal. Additionally, the amps won’t sound the same if they don’t get the same amount of power every night.
What should a guitarist on tour do? Joe Bonamassa knows the solution. The Japanese electronics expert Kikusui built the power conditioner he uses to maintain his amplifiers at a steady 120V, 60Hz. Neither more nor less. And Angus Young of AC/DC, the king of high-voltage rock ‘n’ roll, gave him this notion.
According to Angus Young, who I witnessed during his rig rundown, “Angus has nine stacks, at 240, at 50 Hz, worldwide, and he prefers his Marshalls.” “And you know what?” I asked. In a rig breakdown, Bonamassa gives American Musical Supply a tour of his stage setup and remarks, “That makes so much sense.” “Because there would be a significant disparity in harmonic [content] when I brought this stuff to Europe, where we would be operating at 115, 120, but 50 Hz.” I purchased one, and because we had to split the setup after flaring out a few times, we now have two.
Take a moment before you go to Electronics-R-Us. These power conditioners by Kikusui are very impressive devices.
According to Bonamassa, “they are also $6,000/$7,000 apiece.” “They weigh a lot. However, you want to simply grab a power strip from Walgreens when you have anything this big.
Furthermore, they weren’t made with touring musicians in mind. After getting to know the individuals at Kikosui, Bonamassa and his colleagues were surprised to see their technology being used onstage. When Kikusui created these, they had the operation room in mind.
“They say, ‘Joe, we’ve heard about people like that using them, and guys like you and Angus Young,'” Bonamassa says. “You know that these devices are made for MRI scanners and hospitals? We didn’t anticipate that they would tour.
It’s no surprise that they are so dependable given that they were made for clinical settings; they can provide power and make up a difference to make sure the amplifiers acquire the juice they require to maintain JoBo’s electric guitar tone. “I’d want 120. “I like 120,” Bonamassa says. It maintains it at 120 and 60 Hz. It is 120 if it is seeing 110.
View the entire rig tour up top. He offers some excellent insight into the realities of a touring setup and explains why he won’t be spending a fortune on NOS Mullard tubes when a decent pair of JJ tubes will do the trick. For additional information, you can subscribe to the American Musical Supply YouTube channel.
In other news, blues guitar virtuoso Joe Bonamassa has revealed a third date for his Rory Gallagher Celebration shows in Cork, Ireland’s Marquee. The new date for Bonamassa’s performance is July 3, 2025. All night long, he will be doing Gallagher covers. Tickets are available here.